Dr. Collins and Dr. Mukherjee discussing The Gene: An Intimate History
On April 17, the NIH Library and the Foundation for Advanced Education in the Sciences (FAES) presented the concluding event of the inaugural NIH Big Read program. Held in Masur Auditorium on the NIH campus, this special presentation featured Pulitzer Prize-winning author Dr. Siddhartha Mukherjee and NIH Director Dr. Francis Collins discussing Mukherjee’s latest book The Gene: An Intimate History. The NIH Big Read program began with a series of book discussions about The Gene in March and April, and culminated in this exciting final event featuring the author of the book.
The Masur Auditorium event began with a presentation by Mukherjee discussing The Gene. In the second half of the program, Collins joined Mukherjee on stage for a conversation, during which they discussed topics from the book, along with questions generated by the NIH Big Read book discussion groups. After the formal program, a Meet and Greet was held on the FAES Terrace in Building 10, where attendees had the opportunity to meet Mukherjee and get their books signed.
About the NIH Big Read
Inspired by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), which developed an NEA Big Read program as a way of expanding “our understanding of our world, our communities, and ourselves through the joy of sharing a good book”
[1], NIH Library Director Keith Cogdill proposed creating the NIH Big Read. This new program features a series of book discussions held at the NIH Library about a single book over several months and culminates in a special event featuring the author of the book. The NIH Library partnered with the Foundation for Advanced Education in the Sciences (FAES) (and later, with the NIH Office of Intramural Research) to develop the NIH Big Read.
The inaugural NIH Big Read commenced in March 2017 with a series of book discussions held at the NIH Library. While three sessions were originally scheduled, an additional session was added due to high interest in the program.
The book discussions were lively and engaging, with participants coming together at the end of the session to craft questions for the program with Mukherjee. In addition, the Library offered two training sessions on how to set up and run an independent book discussion. Over 70 people participated in the Library discussions and at least two additional independent book discussions were held, one at the National Library of Medicine (NLM) and one at the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS).
One of the NIH Library’s mission pillars is to foster collaboration and community across NIH. The NIH Big Read has helped fulfill that mission. The book discussions were successful at bringing together a wide range of researchers, scientists, and staff from across NIH’s institutes and centers and the final event elicited an enthusiastic response from the community at the opportunity of hearing Mukherjee speak about his book (and of getting an opportunity to meet him). The NIH Big Read facilitated discussions around the unresolved questions Mukherjee raises in his book with a goal of enhancing the common understanding of ethical and other issues inherent in biomedical research.
